High School
by Gemology
Summary: Lapidot trash for the Lapidot lover's. Based on Tumblr user catprinx's fluffy-lapidot-highschool-au. If you like my work please support me with a coffee! ko-fi(dot)com/gemology . You can also visit me at archiveofourown(dot)org/users/Gemology .
1. Rain

"Peri!" Lapis flings open the front door as she says the name, looking at her friend standing outside. She's soaked, and shivering, and Lapis grabs her hands and pulls her inside. Her parents will be mad that her friend is dripping water all over the front room, but Lapis doesn't care. "W-Why are you soaked?" Peridot doesn't look well, her shoulders are slumping and her eyes look hazy.

"Walked here." Peridot mumbles, so low that Lapis almost doesn't catch it. She feels exhausted, but she hasn't dropped her bag because she knows it's wet too, and she knows she's already making a puddle in front of the door from her sopping wet clothes, and she feels bad because Lapis will get a stern talking to later about the mess and it's all her fault.

"I thought your mom was giving you a ride?!" Lapis reaches out with her hands, then pulls them back. She's flustered, she doesn't know what to do to help.

"She b-b-bailed." Peridot's teeth are chattering, even though she's trying to hide it. She's trying to hide from Lapis how miserable she is, how the clothes on her body are heavy and so is her duffle bag. She'd really like to change, but she doesn't want to be rude if Lapis wants to stand here and have a conversation.

Lapis' mouth falls open as she realizes an important detail. "Don't you live more than a mile from here? It's been pouring for hours!"

Peridot just shrugs in response. She had hoped the rain would let up once she left, but that hadn't happened. Now here she was, cold, wet, and making more of a mess on the floor as the minutes ticked by.

"Why would you do that? You should have just called and told me you couldn't come!" Lapis balled her fists at her side, furious that Peridot would do something so- so- so STUPID! Walking through the rain, risking her own health, and for what? A dumb sleepover. They hung out together all the time, they went to the same school! There were plenty of other opportunities so see each other!

"Wanted to see you." Peridot mumbles, trying to ignore how exhausted she's feeling. Trying to ignore the cold that goes all the way to her bones, and the fact that Lapis hasn't offered her so much as a towel yet. Of course, with all her swim meets, Lapis was used to being soaked all the time. But that was in a heated pool, in the middle of the day, not the pouring rain in the middle of the night.

Lapis can't help but blush a little, realizing that Peridot had done this for her. Peri could have called and cancelled, sure. They could have texted or video chatted all night long, but they wouldn't really be together. Lapis couldn't deny that she loved snuggling up to Peridot, falling asleep in her arms, and waking up lying next to her best friend. She gets so spaced out that she forgets about Peridot, standing there, covered in rainwater and trying not to shiver.

"Oh! Let's get you out of those clothes!" Lapis mentally face palms for not having realized sooner how miserable Peri must be. She grabs her hand, leading her sluggish friend to the bathroom.

Once there, Peridot drops her things down on the floor, and shakily tries to unbutton her flannel. She's chilled to the bone, and her head is fuzzy. She just wants to get out of these clothes. They're wet, and sticking to her skin, and extremely uncomfortable. But her fingers are numb, and all she manages to do is fumble unsuccessfully.

After a few moments, Lapis notices that Peri is having trouble. She's been too busy staring at how cute Peri's hair looks when it's wet to notice her trouble at first. "Let me help you with that!" she pipes up, moving in front of Peridot. Her quick, nimble fingers undo all the buttons in no time, and before she can think about it, she's slipping it off Peridot's arms, tossing it to the floor. It's only when she takes a second to look at Peridot that she notices something. "YOU WEAR A BRA?!"

Peridot flinches at the sudden volume of Lapis' voice, but shrugs. "Can I just please take a hot shower?" Peri reaches for her jeans, managing the button on them alright and slipping down to nothing but her undergarments. She's a little grumpy from the discomfort of soaking wet clothes, and her legs ache a bit from the distance she'd walked.

"Y-Yeah, of course!" Lapis turns to the bathtub, fidgeting with the knobs and testing out the water before flipping on the shower. But her mind is elsewhere as she messes with the water, and Lapis finds herself wondering how she hadn't noticed how... busty Peridot had become.

Behind her, Peridot quietly strips down to the nude. Her body has an odd tingling, since she's now out of her wet clothes and her body can start to warm itself. She rubs at her arms, trying to bring back feeling to any of her limbs.

Lapis turns around, and her mouth immediately drops open, eyes going wide, and a blush immediately overtakes her face. Peridot. Is. Naked. Peridot is standing naked in her bathroom. Oddly, instead of covering her eyes, she looks Peri up and down a few times, taking her all in.

Peridot just scowls back. "What?! You have the same junk!"

Lapis can only stammer, before blurting out, "I don't have those!" An accusing finger points to Peridot's breasts. Lapis can't remember the last time she saw Peri fully naked- probably when they were kids, maybe she never has.

Peri suddenly finds herself very self conscious about her body. She hadn't been thinking clearly when she'd undressed. At least, she hadn't expected Lapis to make a big deal out of it. But the longer Lapis stares, the deeper the blush grows on both their cheeks.

"They're JUST boobs, Lapis!" Peridot is beet red, and she stomps past Lapis and steps into the shower. The water feels great. Peridot breaths a heavy sigh of relief, for two reasons: One, her body is getting warmed up, and two, the shower curtain is currently hiding her nudity from Lapis. The way Lapis had stared, though... it was almost as if she was... checking her out? Peridot quickly dismissed the thought. Lapis had just been surprised, was all.

"I'll put your things in the wash!" Lapis breaks Peridot's thoughts.

"Th-thanks!" Peridot stumbles over her reply. "Can I borrow some of your PJ's then?" she asks, realizing that everything she brought is soaked.

"Sure! I'll grab you something." Lapis quickly gathers up Peri's things and takes them to the laundry room. Once the washer has started, she heads back to her room and digs through her drawers, picking out a couple items that could be considered pajamas. The shower is still running when she gets to the bathroom, so she quietly sets the items on the counter and goes back to her room.

While she waits for Peridot, Lapis starts getting changed into her own pajamas. But she stops once she's naked, fiddling with her sorely underdeveloped bosum. She tries to remember when Peri had started to fill out, and how she could have missed such an important detail. Peri looked... good, actually, great. Lapis sighs, leaving her chest alone and slipping into a baggy t-shirt and loose shorts.

Finished with her shower, Peri is feeling much warmer and in a much better mood. She peeks out from behind the curtain, just to be sure Lapis isn't lying in wait for some weird reason. But the coast is clear, so she steps out, and grabs a towel from under the sink. As she dries herself, Peri inspects the pajama's Lapis left for her. She scowls as she realizes she's been left with a tight tank top and some very short bottoms to match. She knows Lapis has other options, she just picked this particular outfit to mess with her. But Peri has no choice, so she dresses herself in what she was given.

Peri slowly opens the bathroom door, looking both ways for any of Lapis' family. She doesn't want anyone to see her so scantily clad. She rather likes hanging out with Lapis, and though she doesn't often speak to her parents, she'd like to remain on good terms with them. Seeing no one, she rushes to the bedroom, quietly shutting the door after she enters.

Lapis is laying sprawled across the bed, and at first Peridot thinks she might be asleep. But Lapis turns her head toward Peri, offering a sly smile as she sits up. She knows what she's done. Peridot looks even better in the pajamas than Lapis had hoped. The tank top can barely contain her chest area, the fabric stretching over the two protrusions.

Peridot makes her way to the bed, and sits down next to Lapis. She makes note of the loose clothing Lapis is wearing, confirming her earlier suspicion that there were definitely other clothing options available. She tugs at the neckline of the tank, it really is too tight and it's slightly uncomfortable.

"How was the shower?" Lapis asks. She barely keeps her eyes from wandering to Peri's chest. It's not like she's attracted to her friend or anything. But there's nothing wrong with admiring a simple body part, right?

"Great! I feel a lot better." Peridot fidgets a little. The shorts are starting to ride up, and she feels weird in the skin tight clothing. She's used to her normal baggy jeans and sweatshirts, and isn't one to flaunt her looks. Lapis should know her well enough to know this, so why had she picked out such an atypical outfit for her?

Lapis reaches a hand towards Peridot, then seems to think better of it and pulls it back. "Can I touch them?"

Peri gives a quizzical look. "Are you gay or something?" Maybe this wasn't the best thing to say, but it was the first thing to come to her mind.

Her friend blushes, balling her fists in her lap. "H-Hey, you groped me when I was sick!"

Oh. Peridot had hoped Lapis hadn't remembered her slip up. Neither of them had mentioned the incident since then, and Peri had assumed that in her feverish state, Lapis had forgotten. But even though she hadn't, why did she want to feel her up? Peridot notes that Lapis dodged the question about her sexuality, but decides not to push the subject. "I guess you're entitled to a free feel."

Lapis looks up, seemingly surprised by Peri's willingness. She reaches a hand out towards a plump breast, then moves her hand to slip it under her shirt. At first, it's just small strokes, fingers dancing around where Lapis guessed her nipple would be. Finally, she simply rests her hand on top, feeling the small roundish protrusion in the center of her palm.

Peridot is blushing furiously, her hands placed firmly in her lap. She doesn't know what to do with herself. Lapis was just curious, and maybe a little jealous, Peridot told herself. Even though she didn't really care, she knew she was a bit busty. She had to admit she didn't show it off, so she shouldn't have been surprised that Lapis hadn't really noticed before. But they'd cuddled, even made out on a couple occasions. They'd been in such close contact, how could Lapis have not noticed?

Peridot suddenly inhales sharply. She'd been absorbed in her thoughts, trying to ignore how, well, pleasurable Lapis' touches felt, especially since they were so close to a sensitive area. But Lapis' hand had stopped resting on her, and her thumb had begun a slow motion around the tip of her nipple. It was an especially sensitive part of her body, and now the girl she may have had a crush on was feeling her up.

"You okay?" Lapis asks. Her thumb stops moving, but continues to rest right on the tip.

"Yeah, everything's- everything is great." Peridot would never let Lapis know just how great. The girl she was in love with was at this moment fondling her. Something she had only fantasized about, that she never would have thought was possible. But Lapis was just getting back at her for the time she'd accidentally groped her best friend. "They're just sensitive." Peridot would be lying to herself if she didn't admit that she was at least a little aroused.

Lapis arches a curious brow. "How sensitive?" A wicked grin spreads across her face, and Peri knew that that could only mean trouble. Before Peridot can protest, Lapis reaches under her shirt, grasping at her other boob. She fervently goes to work, massaging both boobs and her thumbs swiveling around the sensitive teats.

Peri tries to keep ahold of herself, but her breathing quickens as Lapis continues her teasing. She closes her eyes, getting a little too absorbed in the moment. Lapis is grinning like a child who has been given full access to a candy store. Finally, Peridot loses herself, and an audible moan escapes her lips.

The sound startles Peri out of her thoughts, and her eyes shoot open. She looks at Lapis, who had stopped her fondling. Peri's cheeks blush, so deep that she almost starts turning purple. Lapis slowly pulls her hands away, and settles them into her lap.

Peri is too embarrassed herself to notice that Lapis is blushing deeply as well. "S-Sorry." she stammers out. There's no way she can be attracted to Peridot. They were best friends. You couldn't just crush on your best friend. That was like, against the best friend code. Plus, she was straight. Right?

Neither of them spoke for several moments. Peri was busily trying to calm her hot and flushed face, while Lapis inwardly argued with herself about the morals of what she'd done. Suddenly Lapis gets up, and walks swiftly to her dresser. She digs around for a few moments, before pulling out a pair of pants and a shirt. Walking over to Peridot, she flashes the clothing in front of her. "You can change, if you want."

"Um..." Peridot looks up, flustered for a few moments, before she grabs the clothes. "Yeah, thanks." she rushes off to the bathroom, hoping that Lapis' parents don't cross her path and see her so scantily clad. She manages to change and make it back to the bedroom without being detected. This second set of pajamas is much more her style, consisting of a baggy t-shirt and loose cotton pants.

When she arrives, Lapis is sprawled out on the bed again, lying on her back. Peridot had thought she'd calmed herself enough in the bathroom, but here she is blushing again, her mind racing back to Lapis' smooth touch, the rush of heat to her chest and face, and how she wished so badly that things could have gone even further. But she knew that Lapis would never be interested in an actual relationship with her. She was straight, after all.

"So... Lapis. What do you wanna do?" Peridot approaches the bed, sitting on the side.

Lapis sits up, pretending to think long and hard about her answer. Then she put her hands on Peridot's shoulder, leaning over her back to whisper in her ear. "You." she breathes.

Peridot stiffens at the suggestion, and finds herself at a loss for words. Lapis' hands start to slide down Peri's shoulders, towards her chest. She rubs her cheek on her friend's cheek, their lips almost coming into contact. Peridot starts shaking. She's always wanted this to happen, secretly, but she can't believe that it actually might be happening.

All at once, Lapis pulls away, shoving playfully at Peridot's back as she bursts into a fit of laughter. "Your face is hilarious right now! What, did you think I was serious?"

Peridot scowls at Lapis for the prank. But seeing Lapis there, rolling around on the bed, she just looks so cute. Peridot cracks a smile, rolling her eyes at Lapis' antics.

"It's not like you're gay for me or something!" Lapis continues her fit of laughter.

Peri's smile fades for a moment, but then she composes herself. "Psh yeah, as if!"

Lapis grabs the remote and turns on the TV. "What I really want to do is kick your ass at video games!"

"Yeah, like that'll ever happen." But Peridot isn't just talking about Lapis' lack of skills in the video game department.


	2. Avoidance

Peridot had been acting weird lately. She'd been avoiding Lapis all week, and it didn't take more than a day for Lapis to notice. She thought maybe Peridot just wasn't feeling well – sometimes she had really bad days where she was grumpy. But usually, in her times of struggle, she'd lean on Lapis.

She and Lapis always at lunch together. They'd always find some little alcove or hidden area where students weren't supposed to be, like in the theater, or dimly lit back hallways, or rarely used storage areas. Somewhere they could get away from the general rabble of a few hundred students crammed into a cafeteria. But this week, every single day, Lapis could find Peridot anywhere. Not in any of their favorite spots, not somewhere obvious, not even sitting among the other students. Lapis didn't much feel like eating lunch when Peridot wasn't there.

After every class, whoever managed to get out first would meet the other and walk that person to their next class. If they had the same class, they always sat next to each other and secretly passed notes back and forth. But Peridot had seemed really intent on whatever the teachers were talking about this week. She didn't look at Lapis, she didn't smile and say hi, just nothing.

Peridot didn't even acknowledge Lapis when she met her after a class. The two of them walked in silence. Peridot seemed to quicken her pace, trying to get ahead of Lapis. Of course, with her long legs, Lapis could easily keep up. A couple times, Lapis even intentionally waited at her previous class for Peridot to get there, but she never came.

Lapis started to get a twisting ache in her stomach as the weekend crept closer. She wouldn't be able to make it through the weekend without seeing Peridot. She thought back to the previous week, and the week before that. She knew that she could be a little pushy, and bossy, but usually when she crossed a line Peridot would call her out on it. She'd apologize, and genuinely feel bad, and then everything would go back to normal.

But she _must_ have said or done something really bad this time. Something that Peridot hadn't mentioned to her, but was still holding inside. What could it be? As the clock counted down the last few minutes of the Friday school day, Lapis knew she had to confront Peridot. She had to set things right. No matter what she'd done. She'd beg and plead for Peridot's forgiveness. They were best friends, there was no way Peridot could hold something against her forever.

Lapis was on the edge of her seat when the bell finally rang. She darted out, heading straight for Peridot's locker. As Peridot opened up her locker to return the few books she didn't need to bring home, Lapis came around the other side, placing on hand on the adjacent locker, and the other on the open door of Peridot's.

"Hey." she said steadily, not even not even realizing how threatening she was being by blocking Peridot in.

"Hi." Peridot didn't turn to look at Lapis, continuing with her task of sorting books she needed for homework and leaving those she didn't. Silently she sized up the situation, realizing that she could quickly duck under Lapis' arm if she needed a quick escape.

"Haven't seen you much this week." Lapis was trying very hard to keep her voice level, and not sound menacing or accusatory.

"Mhmm." Peridot flipped her backpack around to deposit the chosen books.

This wasn't getting Lapis anywhere. She'd tried to be casual, tactful, but she was running out of time. She'd have to be more direct. "Been avoiding me?"

Peridot swung her backpack over her shoulder, almost knocking Lapis in the arm. She took a deep breath and looked down before answering. "Yes."

So it was true. Peridot had intentionally avoided her. "What did I do wrong?" Lapis' shoulder's slumped. "Is it- is it because I touched your boobs?" It had happened the last time Lapis saw Peridot. Maybe that's what was upsetting her. It was the most prominent thing that stuck out in Lapis' mind.

Suddenly Peridot looked up. She was shivering, and looked as if she was about to burst into tears. Lapis took a step back, worry replacing twist of guilt in her stomach. "No, no no! It's not your fault it's- it's mine. It hurts to be around you when I like you so much. It's hard to see you when you don't feel the same way."

"Peridot, I like you!" Lapis exclaimed. She took a step forward in an attempt to hug Peridot. She couldn't fathom how Peridot had come to the conclusion that she didn't. Sure, sometimes she'd copy Peridot's answers on homework, or she'd come over to Peridot's house and then play solo video games, but... they did a lot of other things together. It wasn't like she was just using Peridot, right? Where was all this coming from?

Peridot stepped back, slamming her locker shut. "I want to _date_ you! I want to kiss you all the time, and wake up next to you every morning. I want to provide for you, make it so you never have to worry about working again. FUCK I sound so sappy!" Peridot balled her fists, looking down and screwing her eyes shut in an attempt to get a hold of herself. "I just want to love you and hold you forever, and be with you every moment of every day. When we're apart, I can't stop thinking about you. And I just- I can't keep being around you when it pains me so much to know that my dream is just a silly fantasy. You'll never be in love with me, and that's okay. But I can't keep living only having part of you!"

She turned around abruptly and raced for the exit. Peridot tried to hold back her tears so she could see where she was running. Had to get to her bike. Had to get home so she could bawl her eyes out in peace.

"Peridot, wait!" she could hear Lapis padding down the hallway after her. Damnit, why did Lapis have to have longer legs? Why was she blessed with the athletic genes? But Peridot didn't look back, she only tried to speed up her pace. She was glad she got a slight head start.

But as soon as she got outside, Peridot cursed. She scrambled at her bike lock, somehow forgetting the combination to the lock she used nearly every day. A slew of curses left her lips. She looked up as she heard the door open, and there was Lapis. Peridot decided to forget the bike, she could always come back for it later.

She scrambled to her feet, but in messing with the bike lock she'd given up her head start. Peridot managed to make it to a grassy patch of ground before Lapis tackled. Well, tackled her legs, at least, sending Peridot crashing to the ground. Must have been a trick she picked up from hanging out with Jasper.

"WHAT THE FUCK?!" she yelled, twisting around and pulling one of her legs back. Peridot had a brief flashback to the days when she'd been bullied. For a moment, she almost instinctively kicked Lapis in the face. Were it anyone else, she wouldn't have hesitated. Lapis looked scared, still clutching Peridot's other leg, as if she didn't expect such a defensive reaction.

Peridot lowered her leg and pulled her other one free from Lapis' grip. She knew she couldn't get away from her now. Besides, she's panting, and Lapis looked like she was ready for a marathon. Dumb jocks.

She tucked her legs up to her chest and put her face on her knees. She can't keep from crying now, from both emotional and physical pain.

Lapis desperately wanted to move closer and comfort Peridot. They'd always been there for each other. It was hard to see her best friend upset, and not be able to do anything about it. "Why didn't you tell me?" she asked.

Peridot sniffled, raising her head and wiping away a few tears with her fist. "You have other friends. I didn't think it'd matter if we just stopped hanging out."

It was true that Lapis was a bit more of a social butterfly than Peridot. She had her jock friends on the swim team. She got invited to a lot of parties, many of which she dragged Peridot to. There were all sorts of guys and girls lining up to date her. But, when it got down to it, there wasn't anyone she'd rather spend time with than Peridot. Surely she knew that? "Peri, this whole week has been torture without you."

The blonde girl shuddered, taking in a shaky breath. "Same."

"You still didn't answer why you didn't tell me. You know you can tell me anything." Lapis scooted just a tad bit closer to Peridot. Either she didn't notice, or she didn't care, because Peridot offered no complaint.

She looked away from Lapis, fresh tears still spilling from her eyes. "I didn't think you were interested in me... in that way. There are so many more attractive people that are into you."

Lapis thought of all the people that had made advances at her. She tried to think of a time when she'd seen anyone make a pass at Peridot, or when she'd complained about it like Lapis frequently did. She started to realize, as she thought about it, that perhaps Peridot's high school experience had not mirrored her own as much as she assumed it did.

Perhaps she'd been a bit selfish, using staying over at Peridot's house as an excuse to get away from her parents and go out with someone else. Always dragging Peridot to parties that she didn't want to go to, and then abandoning her to dance with less socially awkward people. And yet, Peridot had remained her friend through everything. It was more than Lapis deserved.

"Peri... I'm sorry." Lapis spoke softly.

Peridot let out a fresh sob. Lapis started to cry too, frustrated that she couldn't offer comfort to her best friend, and from the realization that she'd been a bit of a jerk. Peridot got a hold of herself long enough to say, "It's fine. You're super hot, so you've pretty much got your pick of the school. You're a jock, I'm a nerd. We're not even in the same league." She buried her face in her knees, hugging her legs even tighter to herself.

"What? No, not that! About... the way I've acted." Lapis wiped a few tears from her face, moving over so that she and Peridot were almost touching. "I haven't been fair to you, as a friend. I've been stupid. Why didn't you tell me I was acting like a jerk?"

Peridot shrugged, but didn't raise her head. "It's whatever."

"No, it-" Lapis sighed. She ran a hand through her hair, ruffling it as she tried to think of the right thing to say. She chewed at her lip, the words she wanted to say waiting on her tongue. She was afraid of saying the wrong thing, of pushing Peridot further away. "I think that... maybe I like you too." she swallowed. "I think I have for a long time. I think maybe I try to date so many people because I'm trying to get over you... But it never works no matter how hard I try. I think I've just always been afraid of messing things up between us. What if we don't like dating each other?" Lapis blew a puff of air through her cheeks. She was kind of glad to finally get everything off her chest.

Lapis gave a slight gasp as she felt something brush against her hand. To her surprise, Peridot held it in her own, and she looked at her blue haired friend. Her face was red and puffy, and still wet, and Lapis wanted nothing more than to kiss each tear away. Peridot gave the hand a squeeze, looking unsure as to what she wanted to say or do next.

"Lapis I- I want to try. Would you-" she sniffled, wiping her face with the hand that wasn't holding Lapis'. "Would you go to a movie with me tonight?"

The other girl smirked. "That's it? No steak dinner at a fancy pants restaurant?"

Peridot pulled her hand away and her shoulder's slumped, turning her face away from Lapis. "Sorry I'm not one of your manly football star dates." Peridot started to stand up to leave. This was all a dumb idea. Why did she ever think confessing her feelings to Lapis could ever turn out well? What a fucking prissy pants! She had the whole school doting on her and parents that could buy her anything she wanted. Of course she'd expect something lavish from someone trying to win her affection.

"Peri, wait!" Lapis reached for her arm, pulling her back down. "I was just joking, okay? I love spending time with you, no matter what it is. Okay? We just go to the movies a lot as friends, that's all. I thought maybe you'd mix it up a bit for a date, but don't- _please don't_ \- feel like you have to do anything special for me. I like you how you are."

"Yeah, but... this time we can hold hands and make out at the boring parts." Peridot blurted. As if her face wasn't red enough from crying, she blushed an even deeper shade.

Lapis took her hands and scrubbed away Peridot's tears with her thumbs. "Or... you can give me oral during the boring parts."

Peridot stiffened at the suggestion, looking to Lapis and trying to determine if she was serious.

"You'd better get used to my teasing." Lapis kissed Peridot on the forehead, smiling. "Because that's what girlfriends do."


End file.
